SPRC Home> Suicide Prevention Basics> Suicide Prevention History

Suicide Prevention Basics

History of Suicide Prevention

1958: Los Angeles Suicide Prevention Center opens, funded by the U.S. Public Health Service and directed by Edwin Shneidman.

1966: Center for the Study of Suicide Prevention (later renamed the Suicide Prevention Research Unit) established at the National Institute of Mental Health.

1968: American Association of Suicidology founded by Edwin Shneidman.

1983: CDC Violence Prevention Unit (later subsumed into the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control) established; focuses public attention on an increase in the rate of youth suicide.

1985: Secretary's Task Force on Youth Suicide established to review the problem of youth suicide and recommend actions.

1987: American Foundation for Suicide Prevention founded.

1989: Report of the Secretary's Task Force on Youth Suicide published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

1996: Prevention Action Network (SPAN) USA founded with the goal of preventing suicide through public education, community action, and advocacy.

1996: Prevention of Suicide: Guidelines for the Formulation and Implementation of National Strategies published by the World Health Organization and the United Nations, with the participation of a number of agencies within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

1998: National Suicide Prevention Conference held in Reno, Nevada as a response to the WHO/UN publication. This public/private partnership created an expert panel that issued 81 recommendations.

1999: Surgeon General's Call to Action to Prevent Suicide published, which consolidated the National Suicide Prevention Conference's recommendations, including the creation of a National Strategy for Suicide Prevention.

2001: National Strategy for Suicide Prevention published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It outlined a coherent national plan to enhance the suicide prevention infrastructure, including the creation of a technical assistance and resource center.

2002: Suicide Prevention Resource Center established at Education Development Center, Inc. with funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

2002: Reducing Suicide: A National Imperative published by the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Science. This publication examined and summarized the state of knowledge about suicide and the state of the art of suicide prevention.

2003: Achieving the Promise: Transforming Mental Health Care in America published by the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health.

2004: Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act passed by the U.S. Congress to support and enhance youth suicide prevention efforts in the states, among tribal nations and at colleges and universities.

2004: National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-TALK) funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

2005: The Department of Labor, Heath and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2006 which appropriates a total of $30 million for suicide prevention was signed into law.

2006: The SAMHSA Program Priority Matrix was updated to include suicide prevention as one of the matrix priorities.

2006: Federal Working Group on Suicide Prevention established. Representatives from SAMHSA, Centers for Disease Control, National Institute on Mental Health, Indian Health Services, Department of Defense, Veterans Affairs and other federal agencies.